Lens-drilling machine.



V 0. W. HOWLAND.

LENS DRILLING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED AUG. 16, 1906.v

979,007. Patented Dec.20,1 91b.

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LEN$ DRILLING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED we 1 1906.

Patented Dec.20, 1910.

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UNITED srnrps PATENT orr on.

GHAUNGEY W. HOWLAND, OF GENEVA, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO THE, STANDARD-OPTICAL COMPANY, OF GENEVA, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

LENS-DRILLING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Dec. 20, 1910.

Application filed August 16, 1906. Serial No. 330,798.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHAUNOEY W. HOW- LAND, of Geneva, in the county ofOntario, in the State of New York, have invented new and usefulImprovements in Lens- Drilling Machines, of which the following, takenin connection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, andexact description. r

This invention relates to improvements in lens drilling machines fordrilling screw holes in either plain, toric, or meniscus lenses.

My main object is to'supportthe lens in'a horizontal position or at anangle above or beneath the horizontal plane, or rather at differentangles with reference to the axis of the drill so that the drill mayenter the plain, convex or concave surface of the lens at substantiallyrightangles thereto. In other words, I have sought to provide alens-holder which is tiltable to different angles relatively to the axisof the drill and also adapted to swing horizontally upon a vertical axisto drill the lens in line with its mechanical. axis, or at either sidethereof.

A further object is to locate the lens bear ing in vertical alinementwith the axis of the drill and in horizontal alinement with the swingingaxis of the lens holder so that said bearing always remains at theintersection of said axes no matter what position the lens-holder may bemade to assume.

Other objects and uses will appear in the following description.

In the drawings Figures l and 2 are respectively front and sideelevations of a lens drilling machine embodying the various features ofmy invention, portions of the machine being shown in section in Fig. 2.Figs. 3, 4, 5, and 6 are sectional views taken respectively on lines 33,Fig. 4; -fl4 Fig. 2; 55, Fig. 4, and 66, Fig. 3. Fig. 7 is a top plan ofthe lens holder and adjacent portion of the swinging bracket upon whichit is mounted, said lens holder being shown by full lines as swung toone of its extreme positions, and by dotted lines in its other extremeposition.

The lens holder consists essentially of a pair of sliding jaws or blocks1 which are mounted upon and are movable along a bed-plate or guide -2and are each provided with a pair of pins -3 for engaging the edges ofthe lens and centering the lens upon the upper faces of the blocks -1.These jaws or sliding blocks -1 are springoperated toward each other bycoil spring 4- which is located in lengthwise groove 5- in one side ofthe bed-plate -2- and has its opposite ends connected to suitable pins-6- also playing in the slot -5.

The lower sides of the blocks -l are recessed to receive the bed-plate-2- forming depending flanges 7- each of which engage with the oppositelongitudinal edges of said bed piece, while the upper portions of theblocks rest upon the top face of said bed piece. One of these flangesopposite the groove 5- is formed with a longitudinal groove -8- forreceiving a guide-bar 9 which is locked against endwise move ment to thebed-piece 2 by a key or pin 10--, best seen in Fig. 6. This key entersalined apertures 11 and '12 in the bed-piece 2 and bar 9 respectively,and while it serves to lock the bar -9 to the bed-piece -2, the said bar9 entering the recess 8 operates to hold the aws or sliding blocks 1against upward displacement.

If it is desired toremove the lens holder consisting of the blocks 1-,the key 10 may be readily withdrawn to release the bar 9 and therebypermit the sliding blocks or jaws 1 to be removed endwise from thebed-piece 2. This bed-piece -2 and lens holder mounted thereon areadapted to be swung horizontally and vertically, the horizontal swingingmovement being accomplished by providing said bed-piece with a dependingstud -1l which is journaled in a suitable aperture 15 in a swingingbracket 16 whollv at one side of the axis of the drill to afford a clearopen space for the manipulation of the lens in its clamps.

The vertical swinging movement is accomplished by providing the bracket16 with a horizontally projecting stud 17 which is ournaled in a bearing-l8 in an upright standard --19 also wholly at one side of the axis ofthe drill, said standard having a base 20 adapted to be secured to anyavailable support, not shown. This bracket is provided with a flange 21concentric with its swinging axis and having graduations 22 adapted toregister with a fixed mark or indicator /3 on the standard 19 so thatthe degree of tilting movement above and beneath the horizontal positionmay be readily apparent. This bracket is prevented from axial movementby the flange 21 engaging one side of the standard 19 and a cap screw24l which engages the opposite side of said standard, said bracket beingheld in its adjusted position by a suitable set screw 25- in thestandard 19 The vertically swinging bracket 16 is provided with ahorizontal forwardly projecting ledge some distance below its swingingaxis, and upon this ledge is secured a lens-supporting post 26- having acomparatively narrow rounded lens bearing face 27 coincident with thevertical axis of the drill, as 13 and also coincident with thehorizontal swinging axis of the bracket 16- so that this lens bearing islocated. at the intersection of said axes and, there fore, alwaysmaintains a position in line with the drill no matter what position thelens holders may assume, either in the vertical tilting of the bracket16 or horizontal swinging movement of the bed-piece -2- and lens holdermounted thereon.

The front face of the for ardly projecting ledge of the bracket 16 isprovided with an index plate 28- concentric with the stud -14 orvertical swinging axis of the bed-piece 2, said index plate beingprovided on its lower edge with notches -29 adapted to be engaged by alever -30 which is fulcrumed at 31- to the lower end of the stud 14 andis spring pressed into the notches -29 by a suitable plunger 32 andspring 33 best seen in Fig. 3, the purpose of the lever 30- and notches-29 being to hold the bedpiece 2 and lens holder in itshorizontally-adjusted position; as for instance, when it is desired todrill a screw hole through the lens on the long diameter or at eitherside of the same.

As previously stated, the drill holding blocks -1 are spring pressedtoward each other and are movable along the bed plate 2- to bring theedge of the lens against a limiting stop or gage 35. This limit ing stopor gage is disposed in the horizontal plane of the lens at one side ofthe lens bearing 27- and is preferably formed upon one end of a screw 36which is screwed in a threaded aperture 37 of an arm 38 on the standard-19 and is provided with an annulus 3S) having suitable plus and minusgraduations upon its periphery adapted to register with an index platel0, as best seen in Fig. 1 to indicate the position of the limiting stop35- with reference to the vertical axis of the drill so that byadjusting the screw 36 and bringing the edge of the lens against thestop the lens may be drilled a predetermined distance from its edgeindicated by the graduations upon the annulus 39-.

The limiting stop 35 preferably has a narrow contact face for the edgeof the lens and is usually journaled in the adjacent end of the screw-36 and provided with a guide-finger -4l which enters an aperture t2 inthe arm 3S- to hold the limiting stop against rotation during theadjustment of the screw, thereby maintaining the narrow contact face ofsaid limiting stop in the same upright position.

The drill l3- is secured in suitable chuck 4[6- of an upright rotaryshaft flt7'- the latter being journaled in suitable bearings 4LS forminga part of the standard l9. The upper end of the shaft --17 is reducedand journaled in a vertically movable head or yoke 49- which connectsthe shaft to a vertically sliding rod -50. This rod is guided invertically alined apertures, as 51, in the arms t8 of the standard 19together with the shaft 47, to which it is yoked; is reciprocatedvertically by means of a lever 52 which is fulcrumed at -53 upon thestandard 19 and is provided with a furcated ofiset 5%- which engages apin or stud on the vertically sliding bar or rod The degree of verticalmovement of the drill and its supporting shaft is limited by anadjustable stop consisting of a screw which enters a threaded aperture61 in the yoke L9 and is adapted to engage the top face of the upper arm48, the purpose of this adjustment being to allow the drill to entersubstantially half way through the lens from one side, whereupon thelens may be inverted and drilled the other half way through from theopposite side.

The drill spindle or shaft l7 may be rotated by any available power andfor this purpose is provided with a pulley -62 for receiving the belt-68 which is passed around suitable idlers -6d and adapted to beconnected to any source of power, not shown.

In operation, assuming that it is desired to drill an ordinary or plainlensthen the bracket 16 is swung to a substantially horizontal position,or until the center graduation on the flange -2lis registered with afixed index mark -23, whereupon said bracket is clamped in its adjustedposition by the set-screw 25; the lens is placed by hand, between theopposite pairs of pins 3 of the holding jaws 1 and the stop 35 isadjusted to an gage and stop the edge of the lens a predetermineddistance at one side of the axis of the drill 18.

The bed-plate 2 and its lens holders 1 are normally adjusted so that thepins -3 center the lens, or rather, bring its mechanical axis or longdiameter in coincidence with the axis of the adjusting screw -36 andstop .35, but if it is desired to drill the screw hole at one side orthe other of said mechanical axis or long diameter, the operator simplydisengages the lever -30 from the center notch marked zero against theaction of the spring 33 and then moves said lever laterally to thedesired degree around the index plate 28-, thereby producing acorresponding movement of the bed-plate 2- and lens holder 1.

hen the lens holder and lens thereon are brought to the desired positionto be drilled the operator rocks the lower end of the lever -52rearwardly, thereby causing the depression of the drill 18 intoengagement with the lens, the stop 60 being adjusted to stop thedownward movement of the drill when the latterhas entered substantiallyhalf way through the lens, whereupon the lens is removed and reinsertedin an inverted position in the holder, the lever -30 is adjusted to theopposite side of zero mark 011 the plate /8 and the operation of thelever 52 repeated to drill through the remaining half of the lens.

In drilling toric or meniscus lenses in which one side is convex and theother side concave and of different curvature it becomes necessary toadjust the lens holder so that the portion thereof in alinement with thedrill, is at right angles to the axis of said drill and this adjustmentis effected by tilting the bracket 16 upon its swinging axis until theupper face of the lens directly under the drill is at right angles tothe axis of said drill, while the lower face of said lens rests upon thebearing 27 also in vertical alinement with the axis of the drill, sothat when the drill is moved downwardly by the lever 52 in the mannerpreviously described, the screw hole is drilled substantially half waythrough the lens as determined by the limiting stop -60, where.- uponthe lens is removed and reinserted in an inverted position in the lensholder and the latter is again adjusted so as to bring the upper face ofthe lens directly under the drill at right angles with the axis of saiddrill, whereupon the drill is again depressed to complete the holethrough the lens.

\Vhat I claim is: v

1. In a lens drilling machine, a rotary drill-spindle, a bracketadjustable rotarily about an axis at right angles to and intersectingthat'of the spindle, a lens bearing on the bracket located at theintersection of said axes, means for indicating the degree of suchadjustment, a bed piece mounted upon a bracket and adjustable rotarilyabout an axis wholly at one side of the first named axes, and a lensclamping device mounted upon the bed piece.

'2. In a lens drilling machine, a rotary drill-spindle, a rotarilyadjustable bracket having its axis intersecting that of thedrillspindle, said bracket being provided with a lens bearing located atthe intersection of said axes, and a lens clamping device adjustablerotarily with said bracket and having an independent rotary and slidingadjustment relatively to the lens bearing.

3. In a lens drilling machine, a rotary drill-spindle, a rotarilyadjustable bracket having its axis intersecting that of thedrillspindle, said bracket being provided with a lens bearing located atthe intersection of said axis, a lens clamping device adjust-ablerotarily with said bracket and having an independent rotary and slidingadjustment relatively to the lens bearing and a lensedge stop adjustabletransversely of both axes in a plane of their intersection.

4. In a lens drilling machine, a rotary drill-spindle, a supporttiltable to different angles, relatively to the axis of the spindle, arotary element journaled on said support wholly at one side of its axisof movement and means mounted on said element for holding the lens.

5. In a lens drilling machine, a drill spindle the combination with asupporting standard, a bracket having one end journaled on saidstandard, a bed plate journaled on the other end of the bracket andhaving its axis wholly at one side of the swinging axis of the bracket,a lens bearing at the intersection of the axis of the spindle andbracket and'a lens holder slidable upon said bed plate.

6. In a lens drilling machine, the combination with a supportingstandard, a bracket having one end journaled on said standard, a bedplate journaled on the other end of the bracket and having its axiswholly at one side of the swinging axis of the bracket, a lens holderslidable upon said bed plate, and a lens bearing secured to the bedplate and having its bearing face coincident with the swinging axis ofthe bracket.

7. In a lens drilling machine, a standard, I holder slidable upon saidbed plate inde- 10 a swinging bracket j ournaled on the standpendentlyof the lens bearing. ard, a drill and its actuating means, a lens InWitness whereof I have hereunto set bearing sfecured to the bracket andf hzliving a my hand this 11th day of August 1906. bearing ace at theintersection 0 tie axis T 7 of the drill and that of the bracket, a 1'0-i CHAUA 0E1 HOW'LAB tatable bed plate journaled on the bracketlVit-nesses: at one side of said axes and movable inde- MARY CARRON,pendent-1y of the lens bearing, and a lens EDWARD S. BOYDEN.

